


Rainy Days

by StrawberryCoolatta



Category: Hollow Knight (Video Games)
Genre: Gen, additional tags will probably be added. maybe., and they are all friends because i said so, everyone is ALIVE and FINE and living in dirtmouth together
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-13
Updated: 2021-01-22
Packaged: 2021-03-17 17:28:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,694
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28728891
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StrawberryCoolatta/pseuds/StrawberryCoolatta
Summary: Hallownest is finally out of stasis, and that brings around a new day. And new weather. Rain that comes out of nowhere and hurts if too much hits you at once! It's certainly not something the bugs of Hallownest are used to.
Comments: 36
Kudos: 84





	1. Little Rocks Falling From The Sky

**Author's Note:**

> Guess whose starting a new fic before finishing her last one! That's right, me.  
> Anyway, I actually put in some research of what bugs actually do in the rain! And then I combined it with what I do when it rains hard enough to hurt, and came up with this story!  
> You can tell I really wanted to give Cloth more of role because... i love her... but I couldnt think of much.

“It looks like it’s going to rain soon.” 

Ghost perked up from their spot on the bench after they heard Cloth say this, and followed her gaze up towards the sky. The sky didn’t look any different, it was the same cloudy grey it had always been. But they liked rain! They loved the sound of the rain upon the glass in the City of Tears and stomping in the puddles that the water made. But how would it rain in Dirtmouth? It wasn’t underneath any cave, the town was on the surface! Ghost squinted up at the sky, trying to see if there was some out of sight cave ceiling that could leak water.

“I hope it doesn't get too bad,” Cloth continued. “Having to stay inside is such a bore.”

Why would it get so bad? Sure, if one stood in the City of Tears outside for too long they would get drenched, but nothing worse than that. Ghost hopped up from the bench, still looking up at the sky. To their surprise, a few droplets of water landed on their mask, followed by more.

“I’m going to head inside before it gets any worse,” Cloth said, standing up, and walking towards her home. She claimed it wouldn’t be her permanent house, as she wanted to keep traveling, but Ghost always convinced her to stay a bit longer. 

Ghost waved goodbye to her as she left, continuing to stand in the rain. It was much colder than the City of Tears, and the drops were bigger. Actually wait… they were getting a lot bigger. And faster. 

This was not City of Tears rain.

The raindrops were falling faster and harder now, and it felt like little pebbles were being dropped on Ghost. And now the pebbles were turning into rocks! They started running back towards their own house, holding their little hands above their head, as if that would do anything to shield them. 

The ground was already slippery and muddy by the time they reached their home, nearly slipping as they opened up the door. They were soaking wet, their cloak clinging to them. They slammed the door shut, leaning against it and breathing heavily. What kind of rain was that?? They had never seen anything like it before, it was painful and freezing cold! 

Leaving puddles on the floor behind them, they stumbled into the room that they shared with their older sibling. Hollow was sitting in a chair, the Grimmchild sleeping on their lap. They looked at Ghost in surprise, pointing at them, as if to ask why they were drenched in water and looking miserable. Ghost just pointed up at the ceiling in response, the loud drumming sound of the rain drowning out any other noises. They then walked up to Hollow, attempting to get them to follow them to the window. Hollow shook their head, pointing at Grimmchild. They didn’t want to wake it up. No! There was something important they had to see!

Despite Hollow’s silent protests, Ghost carefully lifted Grimmchild off of their sibling’s lap, holding it gently in their arms. There! Now Hollow could follow them. And they did, walking behind Ghost as they led them to the window. The rain was splattering hard against the glass, and Ghost was worried it might break! After looking out the window, Hollow looked down at Ghost, confused. Ghost just shrugged. Neither of them had ever seen rain like this before. Hollow then looked at the puddles of water Ghost had dripped across the house, and looked back at Ghost disapprovingly. Whoops, they hadn’t noticed they had been spilling water everywhere. They would clean it up! Eventually.

Hollow sighed in annoyance, going into the other room to get a rag to clean up the mess. Ghost continued to stare out the window until they felt the Grimmchild stirring in their arms, making quiet chirping sounds. It was waking up, probably due to the loud sounds of the rain. It yawned, opening up its eyes, now also looking out the window, entranced by the sound of the rain pelting against the glass. Ghost felt a hand tap them on the shoulder, and they looked up to see Hollow holding out a rag. Oh. They did have to clean up the mess, didn’t they.

They were about to do so when a bright flash of light lit up the dark sky, shocking both Ghost and Hollow. Neither of them had their nails, but they both stood frozen and alert, their faces almost pressed to the window. It was quiet until…

_**CRASH.** _

A loud sound erupted from the sky, Hollow and Ghost jumping, crashing, and falling into each other in surprise, and Grimmchild screeching and flying into the air. Ghost was hugging onto Hollow’s arm, both of them lying on the floor. Was there something attacking? Was something dangerous out there?! The flash of light happened again, followed by the loud booming noise, still shaking them, but they weren’t as startled as the first time. 

After a minute of silence, the two carefully got up from the ground, the Grimmchild finally calming down enough to land on Hollow’s head. They both slowly crept towards the window, peeking out.

There didn’t seem to be anything dangerous out there. Nothing new, no terrifying enemy that they would have to destroy, just the same old Dirtmouth- but covered in rain. Yet Ghost was still cautious, wishing they had their nail with them. Maybe they could ask Hornet if she knew what was going on. Their sister always had the answers.

Oh no. Hornet! She wasn’t back yet! 

While Hollow and Ghost had made Dirtmouth their home, Hornet was hesitant to stay there for long. She almost always patrolled the kingdom, even though the infection was gone and there wasn’t really any need to. Ghost understood, she didn’t want to stay cooped up inside of a tiny house for long. But where was she now? She had said hours earlier she would be back in time for dinner (with dinner as well), but none of them had been prepared for this terrifying, powerful rain! They really shouldn’t be too worried, Hornet knew how to take care of herself! She was probably on the way back now, they would just have to wait. 

Ghost dragged a stool all the way from the dining room and kitchen area to the front door, setting it up next to the window. They would watch and wait for Hornet to return. They were sure she was fine, but it couldn’t hurt to watch, could it?

Hollow, who had clearly seen that Ghost was not going to help with cleaning up, resigned themself to the fact that they would just have to do it themself.


	2. Where's Hornet?

Hornet had been patrolling in Greenpath when she decided to take the shortcut back to Dirtmouth through the Howling Cliffs. With the infection gone, there wasn’t much of a need to keep travelers out of Hallownest, yet she still felt uneasy just leaving the kingdom alone for anyone to enter. Routines were difficult to break.

As she exited the cave leading from Greenpath, she jumped at the sudden cold feeling of a light rain on her shell. That was certainly unexpected! Tentatively stepping more into the open, Hornet turned her face to the sky. It really was raining, just like in Hallownest’s capitol. But how? There was no cave above the kingdom, was there? She knew she was on the surface! It was only the sky up there! A much bigger raindrop hit her directly in her eye, and she stumbled back, hissing.

Thank Wyrm no one was around to see that.

Well, she wouldn’t let the rain bother her. As soon as she got back to Dirtmouth, she could figure out the source. The cliffs were usually easy to scale, but the rain (which was now getting heavier and heavier) was making them wet and slippery, and Hornet couldn't manage to grasp the rocks without falling. This would be a setback, but Hornet could just use her needle instead. And she did that, throwing her needle up into the cliffs, waiting half a second before leaping off the ground and using the silk to follow it. 

Just as she was about halfway there, a large raindrop struck her out of the air, sending her tumbling back down the cliffs with a small yelp. She hit the ground with a thud, but quickly got back to her feet. Well then. Using her needle was certainly not an option right now. The raindrops were nearly as big as her head (minus the horns) now, and Hornet knew she wouldn’t be able to safely resume the climb. 

Knowing that she might get hit again, she peered down the edge of the small cliff she was standing on. Pretty far down. She was glad she hadn’t fallen all the way down, even if she hadn’t been injured it would have been such an inconvenience. Quickly dodging the large and fast raindrops, she went deeper into the cliff, relieved to see a small, sheltered cave. She could wait here for the rain to let up! It shouldn’t be too long.

The floor of the cave was dry at least, so Hornet could comfortably sit down. Ugh, she was covered in mud. This would take forever to wash out! Wiping the bits of mud off of her face, she started threading her needle, turning it into a string instrument again. It was a good way to pass the time for now. Humming softly to herself, she plucked at the strings, not quite playing an actual song, but it was still music. It was nearly drowned out by the sound of the rain thundering against the ground, but it was okay. Her music faltered at the sight of a flashing light outside, but it was probably nothing. Then when a loud crashing sound came after it, she paused in her playing, tense and alert. It was probably just a rain event, nothing to worry about! But why had she never heard it before? Well, she would still stay in the cave and try to ignore it. It would be a problem for future Hornet when the rain let up.

The rain was getting so much worse now, and Hornet still wasn’t back. Ghost was leaning against the windowsill, still watching outside. The smaller rain droplets were stuck on the window, slowly sliding down. Ghost had tried to guess which one would make it to the bottom first, pretending it was a race between all of them. The one they picked never won. They pulled the blanket Hollow had given them tighter around their shoulders, even inside the cold effect of the rain was apparent, resting their head on the windowsill. 

Oh! There was someone coming out of the well! Hornet? Ghost’s head shot up, but they were disappointed to see it wasn’t Hornet. It was Tiso, nearly falling back down the well he had climbed out of the slick stones lining the outside. Once out, he held his shield above his head, running and slipping through the mud. Ghost watched him go, and then an idea came to their mind. They could go looking for Hornet! And Tiso could help! 

Hopping off of the stool, Ghost went to go grab their nail and then ran out the door. They were wary about the size of the raindrops, but they were sure they would be able to survive. Not even a few steps later, a drop landed onto their head with a loud _smack!_ That certainly got Tiso’s attention. 

“Agh, Pale Thing, what are you doing out here?” he asked, flinching each time a particularly heavy raindrop hit his shield. Ghost’s head was still ringing, but they mimed throwing a needle and thread, their way of talking about Hornet. Tiso was able to quickly pick it up.

“Your sister? She isn’t home?”

Ghost shook their head.

“Not my problem, good luck on your own,” he grumbled, turning away. Ghost grabbed his arm, pulling him back. He had to help!

“Don’t look at me like that!”

Please? Go with them?

“Stop it!”

Ghost continued to stare.

“No! That trick is not going to work on me!”

Nope! It would work, they knew it.

“Fine!!” Tiso snapped. “I’ll go with you even though Hornet is perfectly capable of surviving this horrible downpour. And only because I still owe you after you saved my life.”

This was the third time Tiso had used that excuse as to why he was helping Ghost. They looked back at their house, contemplating if they should let Hollow know what they were doing. No, they would probably be fine, and if they took too long Tiso would probably leave. 

“So where do we start looking,” Tiso sighed, sounding like he was already regretting the decision. Ghost pointed in the direction of King’s Pass. If Hornet was stuck somewhere it was likely she was on the surface. 

“Okay, but how do we get up there? The wall you can so easily scale is going to be slick with rain, you’ll fall!”

Hm, that was true. Ah! Another idea! Ghost grabbed Tiso’s hand, pulling him in the opposite direction. 

“Why are we going here?” Tiso asked as he was dragged onto the elevator leading up to the Crystal Peak. “This is on the opposite side of where you said we should go!”

Ghost ignored him, hitting the switch. It would be hard to mime out an explanation of their plan. The raindrops were shaking the elevator as it went up, but it made it to the top just fine.

“Now what?” Tiso said, stepping off the elevator. Ghost held his hand tightly, crouching down and facing the direction of King’s Pass. 

“What are you doing? Wait, what are these crystals around us, did you do that? What’s your pla- AAAAUGH!!!”

Ghost and Tiso crystal dashed above Dirtmouth, the crystal shards surrounded them obliterating any raindrop that dared to come close. Ghost stopped just as they reached King’s Pass, landing on their feet. Tiso did not, instead crashing face first into the ground. They were now under the shelter of the entrance to King’s Pass, and didn’t have to worry about the bigger raindrops.

“What was that??” Tiso gasped, spitting out dirt. “What the hell was that!? Ghost! You need to tell me about these things!”

Ghost just shrugged. How were they supposed to tell him? 

“Ugh, don’t ever do that without a warning again!” Tiso muttered, standing up. Ghost thought the crystals were enough of a warning. Maybe they would directly point at the crystals next time. Now, time to find Hornet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At last... I finally get to write about Tiso.  
> Next time: Tiso and Ghost's adventures, and what Hollow and Grimmchild are up to while they're gone!  
> Also I just found out what a beta is today. I uh... don't do that. I post these, immediately go to sleep, and then check for mistakes in the morning. So there probably are some I missed! Sorry!


	3. Tiso and Ghost fall in a pit

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It started thundering and raining just as I was writing this chapter. Oh yeah, it's all coming together.  
> Oh yeah! You can see I am quickly running out of chapter title ideas.

The inside of King’s Pass was a lot calmer than outside, as it was shielded from both the winds and the rain. It didn’t stop a few stray drops from leaking in though. Ghost made sure to walk around the puddles, they were already freezing cold, and more water wouldn’t help.

“I haven’t seen rain like this in forever,” Tiso said. “Even the vengeflies aren’t out.”

Tiso was right, the usual creatures that filled King’s Pass were gone, likely taking shelter from the cold and wet winds.

The loud booming sound from earlier happened suddenly again, and Ghost jumped, drawing their nail and looking around wildly for the source. 

“Are you afraid of the thunder?” Tiso laughed. Ghost turned to look at Tiso. He knew what it was?

“Do you seriously not know what that sound was?”

Ghost shook their head.

“Wow, the very same warrior who banished the infection and saved Hallownest is afraid of a little thunder!” Tiso said, laughing even more now. “Oh this is too good!”

Hey! They weren’t scared of it! In their experience, that sound was what usually accompanied the sight of a powerful adversary teleporting in. They were just wary!

“You don’t have to be scared of the thunder, it won’t hurt you,” Tiso scoffed. “But the lightning… that bright flash of light before…”

What? What was it?

“It’ll strike you down where you stand with an electrifying shock out of nowhere!” Tiso said suddenly, making Ghost startle. And that caused Tiso to laugh even more. Ghost crossed their arms in annoyance.

“Aw, I was only teasing,” Tiso said, still snickering. “The chances of actually being struck by lightning are slim.”

That still didn’t comfort them, now they knew that those flashes of light were like giant beams of charged lumaflies coming out of nowhere. They would be even more careful now!

“Ugh, back into the rain again,” Tiso muttered as they reached the end of the tunnel. Ghost knew it wouldn’t be too long, there was a sheltered shortcut just across! Since it was under the cover of a cave, the walls shouldn’t be too slippery for the mantis claw. 

The two were nearly halfway across the open area when Ghost heard the telltale sound of a crumbling floor. Panic shot through them as they tried to dash forward, but they couldn’t make it in time. They heard Tiso gasp sharply as he fell as well, both of them landing on the muddy ground.

“Oh no, oh no no no!” Tiso yelled, jumping back to his feet. “The rain must have made the ground weak! How far down are we?!”

Ghost got up as well, a bit dazed. They looked up, seeing that they had fallen quite a bit, and neither of them would be able to jump back up. And the walls weren’t even the type of walls they could climb up! This wasn’t good!

“Well this is just great!” Tiso snapped. “We’re trapped! I don’t suppose you have any other _magical abilities_ that can get us out of here? Or should I just throw you as high as I can?”

That second thing would be worth a try. Ghost gave a thumbs up in response.

“You’re serious? I was joking when I said that.”

Ghost nodded.

“Well if you think it’ll work, let’s give it a try. I’ve had plenty of practice accurately throwing my shield around!” Tiso said, picking up Ghost. He threw them up as hard as he could, and for a second it looked like it was actually working! Until Ghost painfully hit the side of the wall, sliding all the way back down until they hit the ground with a thud.

“Don’t look at me like that, the rain was in my eyes!” 

Ghost shrugged. It was fine that didn’t work, they always found a way out of things! And they would have to find another exit quickly, because they wanted to get out of the rain as soon as possible. The constant raindrops smacking them was starting to hurt again. 

“Okay, we need to find another way out,” Tiso said, echoing Ghost’s thoughts. “We can’t climb out, and we can’t jump out. Can you use that crystal thing you did before but going up?”

Ghost shook their head. This was not the first time they wished they had the ability to do that, and they knew it wouldn’t be the last. They heard Tiso sigh in annoyance before they turned away to look at the wall again. Maybe they could dig their way out? Ghost struck at the dirt, using their nail to dig. 

The next event happened very fast. As soon as Ghost heard the wall completely break, a mound of dirt rushed out, covering them before they could react. They heard Tiso shout something before it was muffled by the dirt. Oops. They didn’t mean to do that. Someone, presumably Tiso, grabbed them by the horn, dragging them out.

“Ghost! Don’t do that!” Tiso exclaimed, holding them in the air. “If I weren’t here, you could have gotten stuck!”

Once he saw that they were okay, he dropped them. Despite Tiso acting like he knew that would happen, Ghost was pretty sure he would have made the exact same mistake. 

“At least we could put this to some use,” Tiso said, kicking at the dirt pile. “While we can’t keep tunneling- the tunnel will collapse in on us and we’ll die horribly -we can use this as a crude shelter of some kind. Come on, help me carve it out.”

Ghost stood next to Tiso, helping him scoop out the dirt until there was a sizable dent, one they could both fit in. They eagerly sat down inside, Tiso sitting down next to them. They were still being rained on, but it was only the light drops this time.

“Gaargh, since when are you so cold?” Tiso complained, trying to scooch farther away. 

Ghost had always been freezing cold to others, had Tiso never noticed before? 

“Anyway, we just need to wait for the rain to lighten up,” Tiso said, bouncing his leg impatinently. “If we're lucky it won’t take long. Too bad you aren’t much for conversation, this might be awhile.”

Oh. They hoped it wouldn’t be too long, they didn’t want Hollow to get worried! They were also very cold and wanted to find Hornet and go back home. Preferably with a fire in the fireplace and a mug of hot cocoa. Hollow preferred tea, but Ghost would always love hot chocolate the most. Shivering, they moved closer to Tiso, who flinched.

“You’re freezing! It feels like you dunked your entire body in ice water!” Tiso said, but this time he didn’t try and move away. Probably because he ran out of room to go. Ghost leaned against Tiso’s side, who muttered in annoyance, but didn’t push them away. They watched him tap the back of his hand with his fingers repeatedly, also continuing to bounce his leg at the same time.

“What are you looking at?” he said once he noticed them watching. “I’m bored. I can’t sit still.”

They were bored too, that was why they were watching! There was nothing to do except wait.

“Sorry if you’re bored too, it’s not like we have a bunch of cards to pass the time,” Tiso said, as if he could read their thoughts. “Maybe next time you should consider adding an entire chess set to your adventuring gear.”

Ghost knew Tiso was being sarcastic, but they actually were considering that. It wouldn’t have any problem fitting in their pockets. But it would probably be worthless to bring, since Ghost often went adventuring alone or with Grimmchild, who was much too young to play chess or cards. It would probably just set the cards on fire for fun. They wished they had Grimmchild with them right now, it could probably warm up this entire area. Not to mention start a fire that couldn’t easily be put out! But Grimmchild would probably hate this rain even more than Ghost did, it being a creature of fire and all.

Ghost quietly sighed, fiddling with the edge of their cloak. They hoped the rain would let up soon. It was their only way out at the moment. The thunder was still rumbling, but it wasn’t as scary anymore- not that they were ever scared! Just startled! Not scared! And despite technically being out in the open, they felt safe from the beam of charged lumafly light that Tiso had mentioned. All of the ones they had seen before had been far off in the distance. They couldn’t see too much of the sky from where they were sitting, but it was still cloudy and dark. This wouldn’t be getting any better for a while, would it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I sadly lied in the last chapter's note, Grimmchild and Hollow will be in the next chapter! I thought it would be better if I separated them.


	4. Flying Is Now Banned

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is the first time ive ever been able to write more than 3 chapters of something. wow. and im already starting on chapter 5.

Ghost always did this. They always left without telling Hollow, no matter how many disappointed looks they got from them afterward. Hollow wasn’t too worried about Ghost’s safety, they knew that Ghost was probably better at navigating and surviving Hallownest than they were, they just wanted to be in the loop! They didn’t want to spend half an hour searching around the house, just to figure out that Ghost left without letting them know. Again. 

Grimmchild was still perched on their head, which Hollow was happy about. Leaving Grimmchild unsupervised was not a very good idea. Despite it being a higher being, it was still a baby- and a very destructive baby. But right now, Hollow had a use for its fire. 

They picked it up, placing it in front of the fireplace, which had already been filled with bits of wood and grass. Grimmchild’s fire could burn on its own, but Hollow loved the crackling sound of the wood. And it wasn’t that much extra work. They pointed at the fireplace, and Grimmchild spat a ball of flame into it. The good thing about its flame was that it never spread unless the child wanted it to. Magical fire was just like that, Hollow guessed. They didn’t know how it worked.

Hollow settled down in the chair next to the fire, Grimmchild flying up to join them. They had both gotten used to the loud sounds that accompanied the rain, and since nothing bad had followed them yet, Hollow wasn’t worried about it anymore. Grimmchild was curled up on their lap now, so they started giving it skritches on the top of its head. The sound of the fire mixed with the rain sounded so nice. They supposed this is what the City of Tears sounded like. They had never been there before, they spent all of their life in the palace at the bottom of the kingdom, rarely leaving it. But they had listened to passing conversations, and had picked up a bit about what was outside. Maybe one day they could actually go there. One of the only other places they had been besides the palace had been the crossroads, right before…

They didn’t want to think about that right now.

What was the rain even like? Ghost had seemed quite miserable when they came inside, like they had been dunked in a lake, and Hollow was now curious. They had seen it outside the window, but what did it feel like? They would go find out, they decided. If it was terrible, they’d just go back inside. 

Grimmchild followed behind Hollow as they walked to the door. They cautiously opened it, and stuck their hand out. Oh, this wasn’t so bad! Wait. Never mind, these raindrops were hitting with the force of a nail! Okay, maybe that was a bit of an exaggeration. But it still hurt. No wonder Ghost had been soaked. Time to go back inside.

Unfortunately for Hollow, it was not time to go back inside. Grimmchild, who had been flying behind them, decided it wanted to go outside. Right now. Just like Hollow, it was curious about the rain. It shot out of the doorway, and was promptly hit by several large raindrops, knocking it out of the air. Hollow was quick to react, dashing towards Grimmchild, scooping it up and then running back inside. They slammed the door shut with their leg, and held out the Grimmchild to see if it was okay. Lesson learned, do not fly in the rain.

The Grimmchild was alright, just looking very annoyed and soaking wet. It sneezed, shivering. After carrying it back to the living room, Hollow set the child down on the chair, then wrapping it in the blanket that had been hanging off the back of said chair. Aw. It looked really cute wrapped up like that. 

So, it wouldn’t do that again? Hollow couldn’t ask outloud, but they hoped Grimmchild would understand not to go flying in the rain. Was this what the City of Tears was like too? How could bugs stand to live there? Maybe everything was inside. Still, it wouldn’t make sense to build a whole city in a place like that. They wouldn’t bring Grimmchild if they visited, that was for sure.

Hollow could feel themself getting sleepy. They were sure it wouldn't hurt to close their eyes just for a little bit. The Grimmchild was already fast asleep, Hollow didn’t know how they could fall asleep so often and so quickly. What a skill to have. Yeah, they were sure it would be fine to close their eyes. The sound of the rain was oh so relaxing, and… they were already asleep.

The rain hadn’t stopped, but it was less intense than before. Hornet was sure she could traverse the cliffs with rain like this, and she knew she should move quickly in case it got any worse. 

She threw her needle, bracing herself for the rain this time. She successfully flew through the air, only being thrown a little bit off balance. A few moments later, she was at the top. 

Normally, Hornet would have taken the shortcut over King’s Pass with a few well timed throws of her needle, but because of the rain it was safer to go the normal route. It wasn’t that long of a detour anyway. 

Hornet hit the ground with a soft thud, landing on her feet. Well, that gaping hole in the ground certainly hadn’t been there before. Careful not to slip, Hornet walked around the edge, glancing down into it. To her surprise, the hole wasn’t empty, and there was a familiar figure at the bottom.

“Little Ghost? Is that you down there?” It was them! How did they get down there? Were they stuck? “What are you doing there?”

“They were looking for _you,_ ” a voice responded. She hadn’t noticed at first, but Tiso was sitting against the wall, nearly out of sight. “Thought you needed some sort of rescue party.”

“You brought _Tiso_ with you?” Hornet said, stifling a laugh. “Did you perhaps have to bribe him?”

“No, I went with them because I still owed them from when they saved my life!” Tiso said, standing up. 

“Didn’t you say that last week?”

Tiso ignored her. Ghost lifted their hands, motioning up. Oh right. She should get them out of there. Hornet planted her needle in the ground, lowering the silk down the pit. 

“Ironic that you ended up being the one to get us out of there,” Tiso said once he and Ghost reached the top. “See Ghost? I told you so that Hornet was fine.”

“Ghost, it was brave of you to try and find me, but I want you to know that I have never needed rescuing, and I can take care of myself,” Hornet told them. “Don’t waste your time trying to find me, even in this strange new weather.”

“What about this weather is strange? It’s just rain,” Tiso commented. The three were out of the rain now, under the shelter of King’s Pass. “You’ve seen rain before, right?”

“Of course, but only in the kingdom’s capital city,” Hornet replied. “It isn’t supposed to rain on the surface. I’ve been thinking this may be an unfortunate side effect of destroying the Radiance’s grip on Hallownest.”

She didn’t want to say she didn’t know, and that that was just a wild guess. It honestly was the only answer Hornet could come up with at the moment.

“Wait.” Tiso stopped. “You mean to tell me, you’ve never seen surface rain? The normal occurrence of surface rain?”

“This isn’t normal! I’ve been living here for many, many years, and not once has it rained on the surface!” Hornet argued.

“Ghost didn’t know what thunder was. Do you?”

“...No.”

“Thunder is the loud booming sound that happens every minute or so!” Tiso was grinning now. He finally knew more than her about a topic, and he was reveling in it. “I suppose you don’t know what lightning is either?”

“The flashes of light that happen moments before the thunder,” Hornet said. It was a guess, and she really hoped she was correct. Getting it wrong would be terribly embarrassing. 

“Wow! Excellent answer! You are correct!” Tiso laughed. “Do you know where the rain comes from?”

“I’m not going to keep answering your pointless questions,” Hornet snapped, turning away. “I’m going back to the town.”

She quickly walked ahead, still hearing Tiso trying to quiz Ghost about the rain. If she was able to, she would ask someone else about this rain. Someone much less insufferable.


	5. Hot Chocolate- They've Got It

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> kind of a short chapter, sorry. but it IS two chapters in one night so. yeah.

“Hey, wait for me!” Tiso said, running to catch up to Hornet, Ghost following behind him. As they got closer to the exit, they could hear the sounds of the rain getting louder. Oh great, it had gotten bad again. Hornet slowed down as she reached the broken door. 

“How did you two get up here? The wall is much too slippery to scale,” she asked.

“Ghost’s weird crystal magic,” Tiso replied once he caught up to her. “They went to the opposite side and then dragged us across the sky.”

Hornet looked down at Ghost, who gave her a thumbs up. They had used the crystal dash then. 

“Oh, I’m surprised that worked. The crystals could have ripped you to shreds.”

“What?!?”

She was joking of course, the worst that could happen was crashing into a wall or something sharp. But she wasn’t going to tell him that.

Ghost ran ahead, jumping down the broken bridge, Hornet and Tiso following behind. The rain was heavy again, smacking into Hornet. This was the worst. Just a short walk, then she would be home!

“You’re welcome to stand under my shield if you want, it’s no actual umbrella, but it’s decent,” Tiso said. Ghost was already standing right next to him, under the cover of the shield. 

“No, I’m fine,” Hornet said, flinching each time a particularly big raindrop hit her.

“Suit yourself,” Tiso shrugged. 

All of them were now running back to the town, ignoring the splashes of the puddles on the ground. At last, they reached the door of Hornet and Ghost’s home. 

“Lets get inside, little Ghost,” Hornet said, pulling the door open.

“Well, bye,” Tiso started to say, before Ghost took his hand and started pulling him into the house as well. 

“I think they want you to come in as well.”

“That’s pretty obvious!” Tiso said. “You’ve bothered me enough, just let me go home now.”

Hornet knew that when Ghost wanted something to happen, they were determined. She guessed that Ghost probably wanted to apologize to Tiso for bringing him out in the rain. 

“Agh, fine! I’ll stay for ten minutes! No more!” Tiso said, giving up. 

Hollow awoke with a start as soon as they heard the front door open. Was Ghost back? They stood up, going into the other room. There was Ghost! And Hornet! And one of Ghost’s many friends! It was hard to keep track of them all. Oh no, they were tracking puddles of water everywhere again! Hollow had just cleaned that up! But they were still happy to see their siblings again.

“Hello Hollow,” Hornet said, nodding at them. Ghost waved enthusiastically, and then immediately ran into the room Hollow came from. Glancing over their shoulder, they saw that Ghost was going to the Grimmchild, who squirmed out of the blanket and started chirping as soon as it saw them. They both ran off to the kitchen afterwards, and Hollow heard the sound of a stool scraping across the floor. While Ghost was skilled in combat, they were not skilled in the kitchen. Hollow would have to check on them eventually.

“Well, I’m going to go to my room and change into a dry set of clothes,” Hornet announced. “Tiso, you can go sit in the living room for now. I think Hollow started a fire. I’ll be back shortly.”

“So um. Hi,” Tiso said once Hornet had left. “Not much for conversation, are you.”

Hollow shook their head. No, not really.

“I’m just going to go into the living room like Hornet said,” Tiso continued, setting his shield by the door. Hollow watched him go, and then turned their attention to the puddles of water near the door. Time to clean it up. Again. They really needed to get a doormat.

A stool was needed when Ghost was cooking in the kitchen, as they couldn’t reach much. Last time they had attempted to get Grimmchild to help them reach the high up items, but that had resulted in broken glass and a very upset Hollow. So now they just used stools and climbing skills.

They had decided to make hot chocolate! Tiso had complained about how cold he was, so this would definitely help him! They took out one of the pots, and tapped Grimmchild. It spit out a ball of fire, which stuck onto the stovetop. They knew they could use the stove for real, but they wanted Grimmchild to feel like it was helping! Because it was. They poured in some water, and while they waited for it to get hot, they grabbed the bag of cocoa powder. They had found it in the city storerooms, and amazingly it was still edible! It must have been from outside the kingdom, because Ghost had never tasted anything like it before. It had been horribly bitter until Hornet taught them how to properly use it. The last thing they would need was sugar, which they had also found in the city storerooms. That place really did have everything.

Ghost paused in their cooking when they noticed a presence at the doorway. It was Hollow. Hey, they didn’t need to come check on them! They were fine! Only a little bit of the cocoa powder had spilled everywhere! Hollow didn’t leave though. 

Eventually Ghost was finished (with minimal spills!) and had enough hot chocolate for multiple cups! They did let Hollow help them pour it into the cups, three hands were better than two. Excited to share, they walked (they didn’t want to run, they might spill the hot chocolate!) into the living room, giving a cup to Tiso and Hornet, who had returned.

“Thank you, little Ghost,” Hornet said, taking the mug and waiting for it to cool.

“Uh, thanks. Is this the reason you wanted me to stay?” Tiso said, and immediately took a sip, not waiting for it to cool. “Ow.”

Hollow already had their cup, as well as a cup ready for Ghost and Grimmchild. Grimmchild didn’t even need to wait for it to cool down, it just stuck its entire face into the mug, drinking it.

Everyone was in the living room now. Ghost was sitting on one of the chairs, swinging their legs. They were really tempted to take a sip of the hot chocolate they had made, but resisted. They didn’t want to burn themself again. Hollow was sitting next to them, as the chair was big enough for the both of them because of Ghost’s small size. There was an awkward silence only broken by the sounds of the fire, the rain, and Grimmchild’s squeaks. Ghost would have started a conversation if they could have, but could only sit there.

“I think Quirrel was supposed to stop by later today,” Hornet finally said, looking out the window. “He’s been teaching my siblings how to write.”

That’s right! Ghost had completely forgotten, they hoped Quirrel would be okay in the rain!

“Where even is he? I didn’t see him at all today,” Tiso asked.

“Probably still in the city visiting with the relic seeker,” Hornet replied.

“Well he’ll be in for quite the surprise when he gets back up,” Tiso snickered. “I assume he’s like the rest of you and hasn’t seen real rain before.”

“Hm, I don’t actually know,” Hornet mused. “Yes, Quirrel is from Hallownest, but he was also outside of it for many years. I don’t know how much he saw.”

Grimmchild, now done with its hot chocolate, took off flying, aiming straight for Tiso’s head.

“Gah! Get off! Wait actually, you’re like a portable fire, you can stay,” Tiso said, starting to try and push the child off before stopping. “How did you get that warm? You’re the opposite of Ghost.”

“It's that warm because it has consumed the flames of the Nightmare Heart, a terrifying higher being the haunts the nightmares of bugs,” Hornet said calmly, taking a sip of her drink.

“Huh???”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Quirrel does know what surface rain is, but thats because he had been to the surface before he left Hallownest and before the kingdom went into stasis, unlike Hornet who had been raised in Deepnest the whole time.
> 
> Also Hornet really likes to mess with Tiso. He can't tell when she's actually telling the truth.


End file.
